It is recommended to compile with --arch=x86_64 to use mscoff (the windows linker). You can add "dflags-windows-x86": ["-m32mscoff"] to your application's dub.json and compile with the --arch=x86 dub option to force the windows linker on x86 applications. However, you must compile the 32mscoff druntime/phobos libraries manually and place them in C:\D\dmd2\windows\lib32mscoff. You can compile them by using BUILD=32mscoff in win64.mak and changing the library paths to 32 bit windows kits.

Your copy of DMD must be installed with visual studio on the computer to have the microsoft linker automatically configured. This configuration is located in C:\D\dmd2\windows\bin\sc.ini by default.

If you compile with optlink OMF (the DMD linker used by default on x86 builds) you will need to convert the missing DLL headers into OMF import libraries manually, using implib.